Why was the scarecrow good at lacrosse? He was outstanding in his field.

I have to say that I have no doubt that this sort of thing has happened before.  




 A man sat alone at an ultra exclusive restaurant with a three month waiting list

As the waiter stepped up filling his wine glass and to take his order, he smiled politely and asked, “What brings you in tonight? Special occasion?”

The man raised his wine glass toward the empty chair across from him and said, “It’s my beloved wife’s birthday.”

The waiter’s eyes softened with sympathy. “I am so terribly sorry for your loss, sir. The appetizers are on us tonight. May your memories of her be as warm as these appetizers.”

The man smiled warmly. “Thank you so much. I'll be sure to tell her when I get back home.”

The waiter confused “Wait... isn't she...?”

The man took a sip of his wine. “No, she's fine. We just couldn’t find a babysitter for tonight and I will take a Pan-Seared Foie Gras for that appetizer”

I hate my job—all I do is crush cans all day. It’s soda pressing.

I will say listening to thunder passing just to the south of me, I'm glad that I can sit here and watch it happen from the easy chair.  

On that note though, I need a Frenchman's Breakfast because...



Why does a Frenchman only eat one egg for breakfast?
Because one egg is un oeuf






 A boy and red panties

A boy goes to the bank every day and deposits $100. One day, the bank manager notices and asks him: “Hey, why are you putting $100 in here every day?” 

The child replies: “Can we talk in your office?” 

The manager agrees, and they go to his office. The child then reveals: “Well, every day I make a bet with a new person that I can kiss my right eye.”

The manager laughs and says, “You really can’t do that!” The child grins and asks, “Want to bet?” The manager thinks he is being clever, agrees, and in the blink of an eye, the child pulls out his fake eye and kisses it. The manager feels a bit stupid and gives him $100, but wants it back.

The child says: “Okay, but here’s the catch: I bet you’re wearing red girl’s panties. If I’m wrong, I’ll give you your $100 back plus another $100.” The manager thinks he is too smart for this and agrees. 

The boy then adds: “But first, we need 10 witnesses to make it official.”

The manager gathers his team, and after taking off his pants, he feels quite proud that he has won $100. But then he notices the kid grinning. Confused, he asks: “Why are you happy now that you’ve lost your money?” 

The boy laughs and says: “Well, I had a bet with your team about how fast I could make you pull down your pants!”

Recipe - Yeast Risen Donuts Baked as Bread - What happens?

This is playing with my food.  I know, Mom said, Never.  In this case, I'm being "creative" with recipes.

The recipe is from the treasure trove of Bread Machines I have gotten over the last decades.  I was paging through and noticed one for Yeast Risen Donuts.  If you roll this out to 3/8 of an inch, cut them out to donut shapes, shape, fry and decorate with cinnamon sugar, you will have some great treats.

I have been saying that Donuts are nothing more than a Brioche Roll recipe that has been tweaked.  This one is proof of that.  It has an extra blast of sugar in the recipe to make it into a sweet-er bread.  The resulting flavor is like an old school restaurant dinner roll.  Very soft and fluffy.  It added about an extra 10g or 1/3 ounce of sugar to each roll from the standard bread recipe.

Dinner tonight will one of these with a slap of Grapefruit Curd or Homemade Mango Jelly (I haven't decided) and some peanut butter.  The side dish will be a Plantain cooked in a skillet with butter, cinnamon, and sugar.

I had a 20 mile cycling workout today in the heat.  Don't judge!  :)


Ingredients:

• 2/3 cup milk
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/4 cup Butter or Margarine, softened. 
• 1 egg, scrambled (Sorry Vegans, it's for flavor and texture)
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 1/2 teaspoons yeast 
• 3 Cups All Purpose Flour (Plus more if this is thin like mine was)

 Process:

• To proof the yeast, mix milk, water, butter, and scrambled egg.  Temperature should be about 105F or 40C.
• Add yeast to that container and allow to proof.
• Add Ingredients to the bucket of the bread machine, or to the mixer with a dough hook in order listed.
• Mix your dough as needed with the dough hook or the dough cycle in the bread machine.
• To make rolls, divide dough into appropriate size (about 80 grams or 3 ounces each) and roll out or place dough into greased bread pans.
• Bake at 400F until golden brown.
• Enjoy.
  
  No, really, enjoy.  They were wonderful, even nostalgic.

I tried to organize a space party, but there wasn't enough atmosphere.

So having an old dog, I think this fits, perfectly, on a Sunday morning.  On the other hand, it's time to get out of here before the solar furnace turns South Florida into a Kiln.



 A priest is sent to deepest Africa to convert the natives.

He clears out an area for his camp and builds a hut of sticks for has shelter. His only entertainment is the Bible and his violin. Before he retires for the night he builds a fire and sits down near it and plays his violin.

Shortly afterwards he notices that a few animals begin to surround his camp and seem to enjoy the music. As time goes by he builds a large audience of critters every evening.

One night an old lion walks into the clearing a looks around slowly. When he notices the priest he leaps on him and quickly devours the poor clergyman.

A hyena rushes up to the lion and asks him, "Why did you do that, all of us loved his music, we listened every night and it relaxed us so much. Now he is gone. Why? Why?"

The lion cocked his head toward the hyena, put his paw behind his ear and hollered, WHAT?

I have a statistics joke, but it is not significant.

Sunny day and the furnace of South Florida hasn't completely kicked in.  So get outside and get something done before weather interferes with your plans, no matter where you are or what the weather is.

My indoor task is baking bread.  At least that's it for the morning.  

How about you?



 I have begun telling people about the benefits of Grapes.
It's all about Raisin Awareness.

Four men are in the hospital waiting room because their wives are having babies.

A nurse goes up to the first man and says, “Congratulations! You're the father of twins.”
The man says, “That's odd. I work for the Minnesota Twins!”

Another nurse goes up to the second man and says, “Congratulations! You're the father of triplets!”
The second man laughs and says, “That's weird. I work for the 3M company!”

A third nurse goes up the third man and says, “Congratulations! You're the father of quadruplets!”
He says, “That's strange. I work for the Four Seasons hotel!”

As soon as he says that, the last man starts groaning and banging his head against the wall. “What’s wrong?” the others ask.

The man says, “I work for 7Up.”

Rack the McNab Dog has always been tough to feed. Pancreatitis and Allergies do not help.

Please eat your food?

I find myself saying that constantly, for the last almost 15 years.  

Rack, The McNab SuperDog has historically not been a morning feeder.  In fact I believe to this day, that he stunted his growth by not wanting to eat as a puppy.  

He went through his "Prime Years" at around 40 pounds.  Most McNabs are 45 to 55 pounds and I never even got him above 42.  

We got into a "feedback loop" years ago and it calcified into this routine.  I am famously an early riser.  I would wake early enough to get to the park for a workout at sunrise.  Since I have been an athlete since I was a teen, it has served me well.

With Rack, getting him fed and walked, has been a trial.  I never was able to just put a bowl of food down and he'd eat.  I think this is how I ended up with him.  He was left at a vet's office for 39 days and was never picked back up.  Slow Motion Abandonment.  To this day, he loves the Vet, no matter which one, I think they fussed over him.

We went through a slow adjustment process of different foods.  His original diet has shifted over the years but it served him well in his prime.

He had Pancreatitis more times than I care to mention.  This is, I believe, what we are going through right now.  The symptoms seem to fit well.  Loose stools, disinterest in food, low energy, there are more.

He's eaten better than most people.  I've developed a fair amount of knowledge of Nutrition for my own Training Regimen.  It works, I'm constantly amused at the reaction of medical personnel when I explain to them that my resting heart rate is in the low to mid 50s and if I am dehydrated it will sneak up to 60 and I panic.

Long story.  You try doing three marathons a week on a bicycle in Florida temps and humidity.  (Sips some iced tea)  

When I say "Hydrate" I know what I mean.  I bring half a gallon to drink on the trail and it rarely comes home with me after a 2 hour workout.

Pancreatitis in a dog is helped by a lean diet.  The protein has to be prepared so that the fat content is as low as possible.  Boiled ground beef in his case.  I shifted his original diet to boiled beef along with the same tried and true veg to fill out the dietary requirements.

He also has an allergy to grain which manifests itself in an ability to turn poultry into soft serve poo.  No chicken/turkey.  Beef only.  Pork is problematic with dogs.

So he's on "A Prescribed Diet".  

When dogs get older, they have a lower protein diet.  So I developed one.  Vet approved.  

But the same diet over and over is boring.

Waking up at dawn got earlier and earlier to allow for all of this.  I'm now getting up at 4:45AM just to get some food in his stomach, then a mile walk.

That walk is getting slower.

I have always allowed him to direct the walk, a McNab is known to be an incredibly intelligent creature.  If you can't train a McNab, you can't train a dog.  

Rack has a mental map of where the neighborhood is laid out.  Certain walks are on certain blocks at certain times of day.  There is a cul-de-sac near me that is well planted with mature trees and since it is Furnace Hot in August in South Florida, he pulls to go through that street at the 5pm walk.  Other walks are more flexible.

However lately, his historically two mile walks at 530 after putting some food in him, are being truncated in the middle.  His choice, not mine.  He heads back at to the house after a mile.  

He knows where he's going.  In fact yesterday he dragged himself home after a half mile total because that was it, he was done.

But this food thing?  It is difficult.  You have to be flexible.  I don't like pampering, after all, I have a freezer crammed with ingredients to make the next three days of dog food.  The result is that I just keep putting food down in hope he won't be avoiding it all day.

Part of my own Nutritional Obsession is that I make a lot of food from scratch.  There are a lot of recipes for breads, cakes, cookies on here.  In fact, I need to locate my recipe for a cake mix.  Adding two tablespoons of the right dark cocoa to a single layer of white cake mix turns it into a very dark chocolate cake.

This all gives me an excuse to point to the ignored dog food bowl when he's begging for the Cheese Tax when I am cooking for my own needs.

You aren't getting mine in favor of your own.  

If there is one hint I can give is Yogurt.  It is why I make so much of the stuff for my own uses.  He likes it too.  If he is ignoring his food, a tablespoon of yogurt smeared on top changes it into something good.

Not boring is good.

Which is where I am today.   He had Pancreatitis.  I solved that by mixing his normal food 50/50 with white steamed rice.  That bored him more so I added Yogurt to the top.

Since he actually ate the 7 ounces of his diet mix and it only took 2 hours to do so, I filled the bowl again and am going to paint the top with the whey from the top of the yogurt container.

I suspect it's going to be a tough "last year" fighting Pancreatitis.

Since I found my cake mix recipe, I guess I have an afternoon tax.  I'm off to the kitchen to feed Rack again and my own need for Chocolate Cupcakes filled with Buttercream Icing.  Real Buttercream icing, none of this "Bettercream" crap you get in the markets these days.

I'll get off that soapbox.  I have baking to do.

Making soup is an art. If you can make great soup, you’re one in a boullion.

A perfectly demented story for a Sunday Morning.  So fix your coffee or other morning treat and settle in!

 A man arrives at the office in the morning where several of his co-workers are already chatting next to the coffee machine. He listens to them for a bit, then suddenly asks: "How big are penguins?"

The co-workers stare at him for a second, then one of them says: "I don't know, about 50 or 60cm?"

"Huh", the man says, "I thought they were bigger. Aren't there some really big penguins, too?"

They hear a "harrumph" in the back, when another co-worker stands up, walks up to them and says: "Of course there are! Asking how big penguins are in general is absolutely ridiculous! That's like asking how big dogs are. There are about 20 different kinds of penguins and they vary in size massively!"

"Oh, cool!" says the man, "So what about big penguins?"

The co-worker answers: "The King Penguin is very common and well known. A majestic animal. I watched many documentaries about them and their social behavoiur is fascinating! They are about 90cm tall and weigh up to 15kg, but some individual males are known for being a bit over 1 meter tall and weighing as much as 20kg!"

"Oh, wow, that's big!" the man says. The co-workers at the coffee-machine nod. "But, what's, like, the biggest penguin there is, over all?"

The penguin-expert-co-worker thinks for a bit, then says: "It must be the emperor penguin. They are huge. It's not uncommon for males to be as tall as 130cm!"

The co-workers at the coffee machine gasp.

"130cm!? That's insane!" the man says. "But they don't go any bigger than that? That's the absolute limit?"

"Well", the co-worker answers, "I think I heard of an individual being almost 140cm tall. But that's the absolute limit, yes."

"Huh", the man says, "Well, then I guess I did run over a nun on my way here"

I have a geography joke, but I don't know where it is.

Fog on the windows in Florida means the Air Conditioning is cooling the windows down.  High humidity is normal here, so it wasn't a great idea testing a rebuild or tune up of the bicycle in this slop!





 A highway patrol officer is sitting in his car, parked behind the weigh-station. A semi-truck slows down, pulls over, and stops just before the scales. The trucker gets out, and starts banging on the side of the trailer...

He goes up and down both sides of the trailer, just pounding on it all over and making a big racket. As he's making his way back to the cab, the officers suspicion is just too high to ignore it, so he gets out to confront the guy and get to the bottom of the weird behavior.

"Sir is there anything in your trailer I should know about?"

"No, officer! Everything's fine here. All good. Just weighing the load at this checkpoint before the bridge."

"Would you like to explain why you felt the need to get out and bang on the sides of your trailer?"

"Well uh, you see officer, I'm... I'm hauling 44 tons of exotic birds."

"Exotic birds, huh? Are these legal to transport?"

"Oh yeah, they're legal-eagle, man. Papers and everything."

"Well that doesn't explain why you were banging on the trailer. That looks suspicious to me. Would you like to explain before we open it up and have a look?"

After a long pause the trucker replies, "You see officer, that bridge is only rated for 32 tons of load. If I don't have em all up in the air and flying around when I weigh out, well..."

Keep the Jeep, or start with a Blank Slate? Pondering an EV

I have driven Jeep Wranglers for more than 30 years.  I had a CJ7 for 4 years when AMC was still a going thing.  I liked it enough to get the current inhabitant of my car port and the darn thing puts a smile on my face every time I start it up.  

While that means I am not exactly a Teenager, and not in the Prime Demographic, it raises a question.  What to go to after a Jeep.

My own Jeep is in prime condition.  I moved to South Florida 3 years (or so) after I got it, and it's been gently used all its life.  Someone was talking to me about it and I described it as a Cherry.  The last gasp of AMC.  This is the one you want.  Inline Six 4.0 liter engine strapped to a 5 speed manual transmission.

Yeah, I stubbornly row my own in South Florida bumper to bumper traffic.  Even if we do traffic here at high speeds.

It's a thirsty beast, about 16 mpg and the best I ever did was 23 on the highway.  Air conditioning is usually turned on with the motor, save the two weeks we have what we call winter.

But this one is 24 years old, and while the car literally purrs on the road, it always helps to look for what is called an "Exit Strategy".

I have always been something of a Motorhead.  I haven't dropped a new motor in a car, but I have replaced Oxygen Sensors, Fuel Injectors, and Fuel Rails.  Oil Changes are on the clock at every 3000 miles.  With 58,100 or so miles on the clock, I have the oil sitting in my bedroom waiting.

Like I said, Cherry.  

Jeeps have issues with frame rot, and mine does not seem to have that.  It does seem solid, still.  I do have that pesky check engine light that the code is telling me I need to have the "Evap System" looked at.  In newer cars, the light comes up saying "Gas Cap".  It's an annoyance more than a problem and since I have the reader I can check it whenever I get in the thing and start the motor.

Since we're looking at this I have to say that someone has put together something that catches my eye.  I like basic.  Not stripped but "right sized".  I see no reason for heated seats or steering wheels.  I see no reason for electronics that require a subscription to activate.

If it isn't there, it can't break.  Even Electric Windows and Seats I don't see the point for.  After all, I have a Jeep, the windows are plastic sheeting held up with zippers and velcro.

Reading forums for the Slate Truck, I'm constantly seeing people who best can be described as having a case of affluenza whining about not having electric door locks and, GASP!, crank windows.  I laugh at them and say to myself the windows are glass, and the doors lock when you want them, so what else do you need?

After all there are people who pay the amount of money that would be needed to buy a house on a declining balance item like a Bentley.  Then they consider it a good use of money.

I consider that at best foolhardy.  

There are only a few things that I find wrong with the whole idea of a Slate truck.  They call it a Blank Slate after all, you are expected to personalize it to your liking.  Seems like the ethos of the Jeep Wrangler brought to the Electric Vehicle age to me.  

In fact, the Blank Slate is a pickup truck that was designed with me, personally, in mind.

It isn't perfect.  There are three things I see wrong, and nothing is insurmountable.  

First, Radio.  More accurately speakers.  My old CJ7 built in the last dying gasps of AMC as an independent manufacturer had a pair of holes into which you, the owner, could mount your own speakers.  The hole was there to mount a radio.  All you needed to do was wire it.  Slate wants you to buy a $250 center speaker, and a $150 fascia plate to mount the speakers.  Once that is done, then you can put your radio that you had left over from that last car.  I think I have four in the house, but this all seems truly excessive.  I'll put something together, I'm sure.  I have a dremel, hand tools, and friends with a 3D Printer if I really need to go there. 

Second, Paint.  Or more accurately vinyl wrap.  In my climate I have to decide if I want to go through re-wrapping the thing every 3 years.  Florida Sun is fun on vacation, but it will oxidize your paint.

Third, Range Anxiety.  Slate is right, 99% of the time I won't need more than the stated 205 miles.  I drive 8 miles to the park, three times a week, and 8 miles home.  I walk when I can, and when I get to the park, I am an elite inline skater or an intermediate endurance cyclist.  I can fit my skates or mountain bike in the back which is why I am considering the Blank Slate.  Markets here are within 3 miles, and the beach is under 3 miles from my front door.  The range is currently 205 miles. The Jeep does that, maybe a little more.  My Jeep is in pristine condition and tuned well, but I don't go past 200 very often.  But gas stations are everywhere.

My plans for whatever I land in will be travel.  I'm not sure that the 205 stated mile range is quite enough.  I am also not sure that this is insurmountable.  I am not quite ready and that gives the infrastructure time to grow into my own needs.  I may be able to live with it, but the idea of having to use super computer powers on my unlimited data plan to find a top up charge to go from Fort Lauderdale to Orlando is an annoyance.  I really want 300 miles.  

Range Anxiety normally is irrelevant, but on a trip it is a big deal.  After all, I want to go cross country and I'm not sure that the infrastructure is there.  On the other hand, the Rivian people literally went from Tierra Del Fuego in the very bottom of South America to Los Angeles a couple years back.  Sure, everything was planned out well so I guess with the chargers that are coming online every day, I should be able to do it.

But still.  Is the rightsized pickup the right one for me?  Don't know.  I spend my evenings interleaving EV Technology videos with old sitcoms and errands.  I am still learning about The New Normal EV, and I guess, that is a good thing.  It keeps me honest.

Stay tuned I guess. It is a decision worth taking my time with.

I lost my job at the helium factory. I refuse to be spoken to in that tone.

When I go past the giant gas bag with the big cylinders on the truck outside, I wonder if I climb to the roof, would my voice be funny?



If it walks like a duck...




  The Bishop pays an unexpected visit to one of his young priests.


Over dinner, Father Stephen notices that the Bishop seems to be looking a little suspiciously at Miss Fotheringhay, the priest's lovely young housekeeper. So in a quiet aside, he says "Your Grace -- in case you were wondering, I am happy to assure you that Miss Fotheringhay is my housekeeper and nothing more, and our relationship is purely professional."

The Bishop says nothing, and after dinner, he is on his way. But a couple of weeks later, Miss Fotheringhay approaches Father Stephen and says, "you know, ever since the Bishop came to dinner, I haven't been able to find the silver gravy ladle. Is it possible that he took it with him by mistake?"

So Father Stephen writes a letter: "Your Grace -- I am not saying that you did take our silver gravy ladle, and I am not saying that you did not take our silver gravy ladle, but the fact remains that we have not seen it since your visit."

And a few days later the Bishop replies: "Father Stephen -- I am not saying that you do sleep with your housekeeper, and I am not saying that you do not sleep with your housekeeper, but the fact remains that if Miss Fotheringhay had been sleeping in her own bed, she would have found the silver gravy ladle by now."

I have a cricket statistics joke. It's average.

 For the US readers - Cricket is a sport.  Supposedly.  I don't understand it either, and I have tried.  Even after having it taking up time on the BBC World Service.


A woman goes into a sports store

A woman goes into a sports store to buy a rod and reel for her grandson's 21st birthday. She doesn't know which one to get, so she just grabs one and goes over to the counter. A check-out clerk is standing there wearing dark glasses.

She says, "Excuse me, sir. Can you tell me anything about this rod and reel?" He says, "Ma'am, I'm completely blind, but if you'll drop it on the counter, I can tell you everything you need to know about it from the sound it makes."

She doesn't believe him, but drops it on the counter anyway. He says, "That's an eight-foot surf caster Shakespeare graphite 667 Model rod fitted with a Shimano Calcutta 400 reel, spooled with 20lb Berkley Fireline. It's a good all around combination, and it's on sale this week for only $199.00."

She says, "It's amazing that you can tell all that just by the sound of it dropping on the counter. I'll take it!" As she opens her purse, her credit card drops on the floor. She bends down to pick it up and accidentally breaks wind. At first she is really embarrassed, but then realises it's not likely that the blind clerk could tell it was she who farted. He may not even know that she was the only person around.

The man rings up the sale and says, "That'll be $254.50 please." The woman is totally confused by this and asks, "Didn't you tell me it was on sale for $199.00? How did you get $254.50?" He replies, "Yes, Ma'am, the rod and reel is $199.00, but the duck caller is $36.00 and the fishing bait is $19.50.

Homemade Pizza Crust Recipe - And A Cheese Pizza That Came From it

What we have here is one cheese pizza. 

But this is more about recording the Pizza Crust Recipe.  Basically the book that I discovered languishing in a rather large box of recipe books has some more gold to mine.

This recipe will make one crust worth of dough.

If you want an authentic 1970's flavor for your pizza, you want this sauce.  It is what I remember from "Back In The Day" for what a Pizza Sauce should taste like.

Accept no substitutes.

The recipe was officially a recipe for a Calzone.  Since a Calzone is a pizza crust folded over and baked with the goodies inside, I decided to make this into a pizza.

Good call.  It came out thick and savory. 

The recipe was a vigorous rise and if I had rolled it out completely, it would have filled the entire cookie sheet.  I was going for a quick lunch, so I did not get this as thin as I could have.

Great flavor in the crust, more like a Sicilian Pizza than a Cracker Crust.

I baked this pizza at 400F until "done" which was about 14 minutes.  Next time, I will make it at a lower temperature for longer to try to get a crispy bottom.  

Calories are about 1100 for the entire crust but you won't eat all of that in one sitting will you?

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup water  (4 oz)
• 1/2 Tablespoon Olive Oil 
• 1 1/4 cups All Purpose Flour (10 oz)
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/8 teaspoon Dry Yeast (I measured a tsp, then guessed at 1/8)

Process:

• I used a bread machine to create the dough on the dough cycle.
• This can be made in a mixer with a dough hook.
• Add all ingredients in order presented.
• Use the dough cycle on the bread machine or use the stand mixer with a dough hook to get the proper consistency.
• Allow the dough to rise to double size, or wait for the bread machine to beep.
• Roll dough out on cookie sheet and proof for one hour in a "warm place".
• Add Sauce and Cheese and "normal" toppings.
• No Pineapple, please, that would be icky!
• Bake pizza at 375F for about 14 minutes, or "Until Done".

My dog ate a roll of quarters, the vet says there's no change yet.

 I find the most interesting things when I take the dog out for a walk.  Change can happen.

It is August 2.  This is the statistically hottest two weeks of the year.  Hydrate.  It's going to get cooler after this.  

If you live in Upside Down part of the world... your turn is next.





A man is crawling through the desert, dying of thirst...

The desert is blazing hot, and he's desperate for water. He comes upon a traveling merchant. He crawls up to the merchant and says "water, please! Water! Water!"

The merchant says "I don't have any. I'm a tie salesman. Would you like to buy a tie?" The guy replies "No! I need water! I'm so thirsty! Water!"

The merchant says "Well I told you I don't have any. But go west about 10 miles or so, and there is a small inn where you can get water." The guy crawls off. A couple of days go by, and the guy comes crawling back to the merchant. He looks even worse than before.

The merchant asks "what's wrong? Didn't they give you water at the inn?"

The guy replies "they wouldn't let me in without a tie."

I have a printer joke, but it lacks magenta.

 I use Linux, exclusively.  I have done things that completely amaze myself with the operating system but there is one thing that I just can't seem to get to work.

Printing.

But luckily I can just print to PDF natively and Meh.  "Hey?  Can you print this for me?" works just as well!



First Paycheck

A young family moved into a house, next to a vacant lot. One day a construction crew turned up to start building a house on the empty lot. The young family's 4-year-old daughter naturally took an interest in all the activity going on next door and spent much of each day observing the workers.

Eventually the construction crew, all of them "gems-in-the-rough," more or less adopted her as a kind of project mascot.

They chatted with her, let her sit with them while they had coffee and lunch breaks, and gave her little jobs to do here and there to make her feel important.

At the end of the first week, they even presented her with a pay envelope containing ten dollars.

The little girl took this home to her mother who suggested that she take her 10 dollars "pay" she'd received to the bank the next day to start a savings account.

When the girl and her mom got to the bank, the teller was equally impressed & asked the little girl how she had come by her very own pay check at such a young age.

The little girl proudly replied, "I worked last week with a real construction crew building the new house next door to us."

"Oh my goodness" said the teller, "and will you be working on the house again this week, too?"

The little girl replied, "I will, if those assholes at Home Depot ever deliver the blasted drywall."